The Hangover: Part III To Begin Shooting In Summer… If Brad, Ed and Zach Get Their Big Pay Rises

The Hangover: Part III is on the cards for a shoot this summer for a May 2013 release… That is if Warner Bros. and lead actors Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis can come to an agreement over their pay to reprise their headlining roles atop the R-rated comedy franchise. According to the Hollywood Reporter, deals have been stretched out for months, though a final agreement between studio and actors is expected to take place soon.

But who’s to blame them? Take one moment to consider that The Hangover has, in just two films might we add, taken over $1 billion(!) at the box office on relative shoe-string budgets ($35m the first, $80 million the second). After all, The Hangover is a comedy that’s success rests solely on the shoulders of its principal characters; from Galifianakis’ inept man-child to Helms’ uptight doctor (sorry, dentist). Each actor is now reported to be demanding $15 million in pay for the third in the series, which will take place in Los Angeles and is said to “deviate from the forgotten-debauchery” of the first two films, according to THR. The three principal actors each took home $5 million for The Hangover: Part II, while the first entry cost the studio just under $1 million for each actor, with Bradley Cooper picking up the biggest sum as he was considered, at least at the time, to be the most recognisable face in the 'wolf pack'.

With two of Warner Bros. biggest blockbuster franchises on their way out – Harry Potter has now ended, while Chris Nolan's Batman series ends with this summer's The Dark Knight Rises – The Hangover shows, for better or worse, to show potential as a possible replacement. They'll sure need it to be: Harry Potter alone raked in over $7.7 billion at the box office worldwide.